Infinite Mass: Playing Hero
by I Max95
Summary: taken from their world and shoved into the bodies of four soldiers in the mass effect universe 7 years before the events of the games, Max and his friends are forced to deal with bounty hunters, a bloodthirsty broker looking to get the information inside their heads, and an ever more chaotic world that may not be exactly what the games have shown them, SI, M for language/violence
1. Our Heroes (So To Speak)

Infinite Mass: Playing Hero

Chapter 1:

Our Heroes (So To Speak)

Max ran as fast as he could through the walkway Outside the base, cold air just barely held out by his helmet and his armor as he passed through the blizzard. he stopped and turned around only for a second, spotting a flash of biotically produced light as the monstrosity that was once an Asari chased him down, wailing and screaming in a sickening tone the whole time, but invisible due to the snow. he lifted his pistol, N7 Eagle, automatic, he fired a few shots off before he had to keep moving.

breathless, he spoke into his comm unit.

"hey!" he began with "Banshee on my ass, someone cover me"

"language Maxwell" said a flippant tone on the other end "I'm with Karra, we're taking on a few husks near the drop zone"

Max growled as he fired back at the wailing beast still chasing him "someone help me or I swear to god I will lead this bastard right to you"

"don't worry" said a new voice "I got you" just then the Banshee reached Max, reaching out with a grotesque claw and holding him in the air as he struggle and tried to get away. but just in time a rocket sailed through the air and crashed into the Banshee's head, it's power backfired and the monster was reduced to ash.

as Max hit the ground and stood up he spotted a very large Krogan in a helmet and red armor, eyes glowing yellow. he walked closer to Max, brandishing a rocket launcher.

"and the crowd goes wild" the Krogan said, no doubt with a smirk under the helmet.

"Ryann? you realize you only have five of those, right?"

Ryann looked at his launcher, then back at Max "well it worked didn't it?"

Max sighed and slipped a new thermal clip into his pistol "whatever" he started to jog toward where his radar was telling him the rest of his team was.

"uhhh" said a familiar voice on the Comm "update, Brutes, three in fact, they're pinning us down here"

"me and Ryann will be there soon"

"that would be appreciated"

Max broke into a sprint, Ryann not far behind, heading through the firebase to catch the enemy from behind, and out the other side to see complete carnage as Three Brutes swiped and lunged at two comparably small forms, a Turian in full armor, firing a full burst of a heavy weapon, a carbine that fires corrosive chemical flames, and a Quarian in very little armor, hanging back, taking aim with a sniper rifle.

Max burst onto the scene and saw two Marauders firing on his pinned down team mates with their assault rifles, backed up by a ravager on spider like legs, firing explosive missiles. Max picked his target and drew the long, shining strip of metal magnified to his back. a sword made from monomolecular steel, deadly and incredibly sharp.

he turned to Ryann "you head to cover and distract that Brute" he started walking in the direction of the marauders.

"what about you?"

Max didn't answer, but his body flared and glowed blue sending him flying forward with tremendous speed, straight for the nearest marauder. crashing into it and knocking it back. he then turned to the Marauder next to him as the Ravager squealed and struggled to turn around. he took his blade in both hands jumped forward through space, disappearing and reappearing next to the marauder, the teleport giving him the room to swing his sword and cut through the Marauder's neck. as the former-Turian's head rolled off the other Marauder was getting up and the Ravager was aiming directly at Max. this time Max raised his hand and it flashed blue, a small beam of energy shooting across the distance and blowing a hole straight through the weakened marauder. this shot was a risk, as it drew power from his shields. so as the Ravager lined it's launchers up and fired, his shields were completely decimated.

he stumbled back before flaring up and charging the ravager, knocking into it and slashing again and again at it until it fell to the ground and started to ooze acidic blood.

Max waited for his shields to recharge before rejoining the rest of his squad. with Ryanne's help, they were able to take down one brute, but two still remained. Max raised his pistol and began to fire at the hulking masses of organic and synthetic material.

with his focusing on the brutes he did not notice as a husk ran up to him and pounced him. it clawed and bit at him and he desperately tried to push it away. a shot rang out and the Husk's head exploded.

Max saw as the Quarian with the sniper rifle reloaded her smoking gun.

"thanks Karra"

she said nothing, she just nodded.

the second brute finally went down in a rain of fire from the Turian's carbine. only one remained and Ryann charged it, smashing into it and bashing it again and again with his fists and the butt of his assault rifle. only when Ryann smashed his fist into the Brute's head like a hammer did it fall to the ground, dead.

then they had a moment of quiet, they all gathered together, reloading their guns.

"well" said the Turian "that was interesting"

"Alyx" Max said to him "interesting is a word for it"

"more is coming" Karra said simply, looking through her sniper scope "what is this? wave six"

"nine" Max pointed out "mission objective is next"

"damn" Alyx said with a smirk under his mask "well, time to meet our makers"

"just stick with me" Max said back to him "we can get through this if we all-"

###

the phone rang, the freaking phone is ringing. "one sec" I said into the mic before standing from my desk "hey! we can't just pause-" Alex started to say before I took the headset out of my ear, not wanting to hear them talk while I spoke on the phone.

I grabbed the small square device and hit the button to answer, wedging it between my shoulder and my crookedly turned head. then I went back to the computer to play the game.

"hello" I said into the phone as I maneuvered my N7 Slayer into position to take on an incoming group of cannibals.

"yes, is this Maxwell Barton?"

"that depends, who's asking?"

"that doesn't matter"

I groan as I see Kara going down, her choice of character being Quarian, not a bad choice but poor endurance I'm afraid, Ryan rushes to aid her, Krogan make the best medics, always rushing straight into gunfire to save people.

"well, what do you want?"I ask, somewhat rudely

"very rude, have I interrupted something?"

"yep" I said plainly as I faintly hear Alex scream through the headset as his Turian Havoc gets hammered repeatedly by a Ravager's blast, he narrowly escapes getting downed.

"well listen, I'm calling about a job" what? that makes no sense, I'm in college, as in, I'm sitting in a college dorm room right now, why would I get a job offer?"it's very important that you listen to me"

"look man" I say plainly "I'm in school, and I'm not interested in any jobs at the moment"

"no education required here, you'll learn the basics on site"

"what is this job?"

"well I can't tell you that...suffice to say it relies heavily on your current skill set"

"hmm" Ryan beats a cannibal to death as I rush in and secure the pilot's jettisoned cargo, heading back to the extraction zone, I always liked Krogan melee, so satisfying, but as I always say, swords are awesome, that's why I play an N7 slayer. "playing...video games" I say blankly, only half paying attention to the call.

I hear a chuckle from the other side "you don't know the half of it" says the voice on the phone "welcome aboard Max"

"I haven't agreed to anything"

"I know, but you don't have to, I know you are just the right person for the job, the call? well, that was just a link to help us lock onto you...see you soon" then he hung up..

…

what the fuck? he just hung up...and what was that he said?

eh, fuck it.

I hang up and get back to playing, putting the ear piece back in

"sorry" I say to the squad "phone call"

"who was it? was it a girl?" said Alex in a joking, feminine tone "oh, wait, now I remember who I'm talking to-ah!" he said as if he was interrupted mid-sentence, as I rounded a corner heading into the power computer room of firebase White "damn Banshees"

I groaned into the microphone "shut up" I say defensively "I talk to Kara don't I"

"Kara doesn't count"

"wow" I hear Kara say on the line "thanks a lot Alex"

"I'm just saying, some men like women more feminine, you, you joined the navy for Christ's sake, not very feminine"

"go suck a dick" was Kara's only response, he was right about one thing, she joined the navy right out of High school, this game was the only time off she's had in a while. she plays a Quarian infiltrator, sniping is her thing. Kara and I met at school one day when I was 16, we started sitting together in the library before school. Smartest person I've ever met, straight A student, but a bit of a temper, she's been known to get into a few scraps with other students, probably why she joined the navy, though I'm not sure how much fighting you get to see on a boat.

"regardless of my status in terms of male genetalia, Max still needs a girlfriend"

"I'm waiting till I get out of school" I reply, firing an energy blast

"I'm sure you are" Alex said sarcastically "fuck" he exclaimed "I'm down" as I ran in to save him in the game I remembered him as he always was...a bit of a dick. Alex is my older brother, and he's always been the funny one in our family, the sibling that was always cracking jokes at the dinner table. he was also the maverick, going out to parties, drinking, smoking, not exactly a model citizen.

anyway all this family thinking is ruining my game, in my distraction I got insta-killed by a passing banshee...damn banshees.

"we lost Max!" Ryan yelled over the chat "damn banshees!"

"I know right!?"I replied

"of all the enemy types I hate them the most" I see as Ryan's Krogan Sentinel charges into battle, beating his fists on the Banshee that killed me "I will avenge you!"

Ryan's a good friend, we met when he became homeless a few years back, his dad kicked him out, and my mom put him up in our house, he slept on our couch for a while, but moved out with his girlfriend about two years before I went away to college, always friendly, always talking with everyone about video games, movies, TV shows, etcetera he's the nerdy friend I need sometimes, someone to talk about useless and pointless things, but like so many of my friends, I haven't seen him in a while, online games being the only real time I see him, and even then "see" is a relative term. bit of an air head though, Alex is always ripping on his...obtuse logical stand points, and in this context obtuse means "slightly idiotic"

I'm jolted back to reality once more when the wave finishes and I come back to life.

"okay" I say "here we go"

"finally" Kara says

"okay" I start to say once more "Ryan and I will go to the far end of the map and draw the enemies away, Kara you stick by the perch to the left of the evac zone, try to cover us as best you can, Alex, you cover Kara, her Quarian shields can't take a hit"

"yours aren't so great either" Kara points out

"yeah but I'm biotic, there's a lot to be said for Biotics"

the wave began and suddenly I felt a pit form in the bottom of my stomach. we split up two and two and the plan was coming together, about half way to extraction we moved closer to the zone, never cornering ourselves in the same place, but the feeling of uneasiness didn't go away, I still felt like something was wrong.

the screen flickered and started to get fuzzy, I got light headed, and with 20 seconds left I stopped dead in my tracks in front of the evac zone, my character not responding to me.

the screen shut off...or perhaps it's more accurate to say there is no longer a screen.

my vision blurred, I fell to the ground, my desk was gone, my computer vanished, and suddenly I was in a different place entirely.

in my delirium I stood up and could see the bright sun, hear the whistling of the wind, feel little tendrils of ice creep through the cracks of my mask and onto my bare flesh, I was outside, that much was certain, I could perceive no ceiling to this cold, deprived area.

it wasn't until I turned around and looked with wide eyes at where I found myself that the truth finally hit me.

every detail, every inch of this place was a perfect image of firebase White from Mass Effect 3.

through pure shock, my mind shut down and I fell back, feeling the rush as I tipped over, and my head crashed into the ground.

**AN: It's not my favorite thing that i've written, this chapter, it's mostly just introductions to the characters and to the gimmick, and the whole multiplayer character thing is a gimmick mostly though I do think it puts a unique spin on things. I promise not to make them unstoppable badasses because of it, I think i've proven that in the chapters I currently have written at this point, those I am proud of, a little.**

**speaking of which I have 7 full chapters of this written out, I will try to write the 8th before posting chapter 2, and so on and so forth for the rest of the story, that way once I complete the story you won't have to wait very long to read the ending since i'll have been several chapters ahead the whole time. though if I get into a writing slump and haven't posted a chapter in a while I might just post another one to tide you guys over**

**shout out to TheRev28, for creating an awesome Self Insert story reminding me how amazing they can be and inspiring me to write one of my own, and for cancelling said awesome SI, reminding me that life is short and miserable and I should probably just post the damn thing no matter how crap I think it is.**

**i'm mostly kidding about that whole "short and miserable" part, Rev, if you're reading this, no hard feelings**

**until next time :)**


	2. Out in the Cold

Infinite Mass: Playing Hero

Chapter 2

Out in the Cold

when I woke up all I remember is the snow filling every bit of my vision. clouds of the frozen stuff clouding my helmet and making sure that all I saw was a fine layer of frost...also I was wearing a helmet, not sure where that came from. I thought back to when I was a kid and I used to love the snow, I'd play and have snowball fights with Alex...that was back before Alex grew into his sarcastic prick phase that he still hasn't grown out of. lately the snow stopped being fun in my home town, the middle of January and so much snow that every positive thought I ever had about it vanished, leaving nothing but biting cold and frozen death..

I was being Dragged, don't know by whom, as I'd gone limp and my vision blurry. I felt the rough ground slide beneath my back. then I realized I was inside, suddenly I find my ears opening, no longer muffled by the snowstorm, I find my breath no longer stings with cold and a beam of light shines through the frost, as if from a light bulb.

I hear muffled voices as I numbly feel for some kind of latch on my helmet. my hand lands on a small button and I frantically push it before jerking my hands out and sending the frozen helmet flying off.

I whimper slightly as I look around, seeing a small room, worn out and rusty walls, cobweb covered screens, it looks abandoned.

then everything hits me at once.

I see a Krogan heaving his giant arms to shut a large sliding door. I see a Quarian seated against the wall, banging her helmeted head against the it, and I see a fully armored Turian pacing and babbling what has basically become gibberish at this point.

"what the-!" I scream before crawling away backwards.

"whoa!" said the Turian frantically, in a very familiar voice "calm down man!"

"don't ask me to calm down!" I yell "you're not supposed to exist!"

"oh stop getting your panties in a bunch" the Turian said rudely as he rolled his eyes "we're all in the same boat here" I saw the Quarian get up and walk forward simply to smack the Turian on the back of the head

"ow! what was that for?"

"for being a prick" the Quarian said before sitting back down.

meanwhile I sat and shook my head , tapping my head against my knee, the Turian comes closer and offers an outstretched talon, as if to help me up.

"come on man..." I don't respond "Max?"

I calm down for a moment and look up at him, suddenly recognizing the voice. it came from a thousand wise cracks and insulting jabs in my direction.

"Alex?"

the Turian nodded his helmet-covered head "in the flesh...just not my flesh"

I take his hand and he pulls me up "this is fucked up" I say simply, conveying well the pit of anxiety growing in my stomach.

"it's fine bud" he says "we're not dead yet" he injects a kind of cool confidence into his speech that almost makes me stop being afraid. That was the thing about Alex, you put him in any situation and no matter what it is he faces it with a wise crack and a winning smile, not sure how well that smile bit is gonna work now though.

"I'm not so sure" said the Krogan at the door, looking out "this place goes on for miles in every direction, not only that, we're on a cliff face, as in hundreds of feet above the ground" he left the door and walked closer, pacing back and forth, his arms crossed. it's Ryan, it has to be, his voice is deepened by...you know...becoming a Krogan, but it's definitely his voice. he looks at all of us and then back at the room we're in "this place looks abandoned...but maybe there's something we can use to contact someone to come help us"

Alex scoffed as he leaned back onto the wall behind him "what if no one comes?"

"then we figure it out from there" said the Quarian I assume is Kara "a little positivity would be appreciated dude"

Alex shrugged "I'm a realist"

"no" I said as I composed myself enough to stand and pick up my helmet, now dripping with the water from freshly melted frost. "this is Firebase White...Noveria, that means civilization, if we can contact port Hanshan, someone will come help us" yes! I knew that my incredible memory in regards to fictional universes would come in handy, I'm stumped when anyone mentions the word "positive externality" in my Econ class, but I can tell you the official motto of every noble family in the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros...of course that one won't be useful here...at least I hope it won't, I already have to deal with Reapers as a possibility, I don't want White Walkers showing up too.

"right" Ryan said as he rubbed his eyes "I don't suppose any of us know what the hell is going on"

"fuck if I know" said Kara as she went over to one of the dust covered screens. touching the frayed wiring and starting to fiddle with it. she stares at the wiring for a while, tries to pull a cord out and ends up stripping the old wire of its rubber coating "damn!" she exclaimed "well apparently not all Quarians are good with Tech"

"that means we only have the bodies but not the skills" Ryan says, giving me an idea. I raise one of my hands and point it at a nearby box, I try to focus, try to think of...uh...biotic things. as I rack my brain trying to figure it out my hand just stays the same. I get frustrated and swing my fist around making the box jump a few inches off the ground, glowing faintly.

Alex chuckles slightly "it's okay man, performance issues, happens to everybody every once in a while"

as Ryan sits down on the floor against the wall I hear him chuckle, I just sigh and give Alex a cold stare.

"hey!" Alex said "I have my coping mechanisms, you have yours" Alex fell back against the wall and sat down. all of us joined him, forming a small circle.

"so" I said, reaching behind my back, finding the long sharp sword attached there and placing it front of me, then finding the small pistol at my hip and putting it next to the sword. "we have the natural abilities of our respective multiplayer characters, but not the acquired skills, like how I have biotics but no idea how to use them...but that isn't important, what's important is _When"_ I stood up and motioned to the room "look at this place, dusty, broken, abandoned, we're at least a few months before Mass Effect 3, if not years before"

"your point?" Kara asked, slumped against the nearby wall

"my point is we're safe for now, no threat of Reapers on our heads"

"oh no" Alex said "just the threat of freezing to death"

Kara glared at him from beside him "would it kill you to be a little bit more positive from time to time?"

"oh I'm positive" he shook his head violently "in fact I'm just gonna assume I'm in an insane asylum right now and all of you are just my brain trying to rationalize some great tragedy...way more positive than this shit"

"I'll reiterate, go suck a dick"

"you know you love me Kara" Alex replied sarcastically

Ryan groaned and got to his feet, looking us over "we'll probably be found and rescued, so please just everyone chill out"

"Alex pointed a Talon at Ryan "Ryan-logic, in the real world people don't do routine checks of abandoned stations"

Kara growled again at him "so what would you suggest?"

Alex shrugged and stood up "I say we take our chances out there"

"oh really" Ryan said "and freeze to death in the middle of a fucking blizzard"

"better than freezing to death here"

all this arguing, we need a solid plan "look" I say "everyone just calm down" I point to a nearby console "I'm gonna see if I can get one of these computers open, after that...well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

"fine" Alex said, putting everyone else to silence as I walk over to a nearby desk

it's covered in dust and cobwebs and the chair is tipped over, but the console on top of it seems free of physical damage. I spot my glass helmet on the floor and pick it up, fitting it into place around my face, I seems to help me stay warmer.

as I pick the chair off the floor and stand it up I try and turn the console on, but to no avail, the thing is dead. I plopped down on the chair and looked back to my three friends in the corner. this is the first time in a long time that we've all been together like this in at least a year, and what do you know, 3 out of 4 of us aren't even human when it happens, and all 4 of us are in another dimension, go figure. Of course we could all just be in an insane asylum like Alex said, you never know.

I take a quick look at myself, a full set of Slayer armor fit snugly over my body, painted all black, egh, looks like Kai Leng's armor, I need to find a way to make it look a bit different if I'm gonna keep it. plus, I'm biotic, if only I knew how they worked I could be a proper super hero...well, super person anyway, hero's saying a bit much. I reached out my hand and tried to focus on the nearby pen sitting on the desk. after a moment it glowed blue and jumped up a single inch.

"AAARGH!" I screamed and slammed a fist on the table in frustration, that however, was exactly what needed to happen, as soon as I did that, my arm glowed orange, and the familiar shape of an Omni-tool appeared around it.

"shit" I said to myself as a bright smile curled its way across my face "of course!" of course I'd have an Omni-tool, I have the armor and the equipment, even the biotic potential, I'm in the body of an N7 soldier, why wouldn't I come equipped with an Omni tool.

the others stood up in surprise, watching as I touched the hard light surface, immediately bringing up a screen that looked similar to the one on my old Iphone, with several rows of icons on it, with indicators that I could swipe the screen and scroll to even more icons. I read the names off in my head, combat applications, entertainment applications (I make a mental note to check that out later) communications applications, pressing that one makes another screen come up and on it a buffer wheel went around for about 4 seconds before concluding that I had no comm signal, fuck, even in the future nothing works. in my disappointment I found myself on the floor against the wall, I sort of flipped the desk I was just at in pure rage, electronics littered the floor. I was never good at containing anger, especially in unstable situations such as these.

Kara was the first to approach me "no luck huh?"

"am I that obvious?"

"yep" she crossed her arms "but we'll think of something"

"I certainly hope so" I turned to a nearby doorway and looked out into the blizzard, the air outside is thick and filled to the brim with nothing but white. I got to the chair and sit down, crossing my arms. "you're military, what does your training say that could help?"

"I don't think it says anything that we can use in this situation" she shrugged "they don't cover everything in basic you know, especially not 'what to do if you find yourself in another dimension'"

"no I mean, wilderness survival? traversal?"

"I was in the navy, I was on boats"

"figured as much" I nodded as she walked to a wall and slumped against it, we seem to be doing a lot of that lately. I was so stressed that all I wanted to do was say screw it to the whole thing and make a run for it, but I didn't have the courage for something like that, I never do, now all I could do was wait to be found, or freeze to death, in this weather, those are realistically our only options.

I stare wide-eyed at my three remaining friends, bickering to each other, my eyes grew heavy, my head fell slowly to the surface of the desk and before I realized it, I was already gone, asleep, deeply in fact.

I saw my home, where I came from, Alex was with me, but no one else, not our sisters or our parents or our eldest brother, just the middle son and me, the youngest. my home was burning, and a voice spoke through the darkness.

"_you are insignificant" _it bellowed through the fire "_your intervention will not stop the harvest, we cannot be stopped, the cycle must continue"_

then I heard it scream, that same, damn Reaper-scream that I heard so much in Mass effect 3, but inside my own head this time, making me cry out in agony.

that was when I woke up, arising with a start to find a gun to my head.

I shrieked and pushed it out of the way before falling hard to the ground, the soldier before me in full armor didn't fire, he just grunted in frustration and grabbed me by the collar, putting the gun even more into my face.

"stay still!" he screamed "we're not gonna hurt you" I turned to see my friends standing up, each with guns trained to their heads, a man in a wide brimmed hat and a winter coat standing next to them, cigarette hanging from his mouth.

"you in charge?" he said in a southern accent, pointing to me as the soldier next to me forced me to stand

"excuse me?" I asked, in total fear as I watched my friends fidget and stand about nervously, obviously just as afraid as me.

"I asked if you were the leader here" he reiterated, his drawl making it hard to take him seriously

"well, no" I admitted

"then who is?" I wasn't sure if pointing out a leader was good or bad, maybe they were bloodthirsty bandits who wanted to make an example of the leader, or maybe they just wanted to know who to talk to.

I heard a female sigh as Kara took a step forward "uh, sir?" the southern gent looked at Kara "I'm the only one here with any real military training"

the gent smiled and took the cigarette out of his mouth "you mean to tell me that four highly armed and dangerous looking mother fuckers are found in an abandoned comm station, and there is only ONE among you who has any idea how to shoot a gun"

from the growl Kara emitted, I saw she was angry, she didn't like the man, I could tell.

"just a bunch a' genuine rookies trying to play with guns, unless of course you're lying" he laughed and turned to his men "confiscate the weapons, we'll bring them in for questioning, see if they are really as inexperienced as they say" he turned to me and gave me a sickening smile "we are gonna have a lot of fun together you an' I" then his incredibly rude friend pulled my arms behind my back and I felt a strange tingling, like the feeling of my Omni tool, I assumed I was wearing hard light cuffs.

well, I could say things couldn't get much worse, but it'd be wrong. they can, and I got the feeling they would get much MUCH worse.

**A/N: hello my numerous adoring fans, who aren't all that numerous, or adoring... **

**so yeah, I like this chapter and the coming chapters much more than the first, I hope you do too, I wouldn't want people saying it went downhill, oh and I forgot to mention last time, I made that stupid little cover in the corner there, you can thank Adobe Illustrator for that**

**so what happened to them? and why? and How? why did I use Mass Effect 3 characters yet set it before Mass Effect 3? What is the meaning behind the incredibly heavy handed dream sequence? how will our intrepid heroes escape captivity?**

**tune in next time to NOT get the answers to most of those questions, and in fact just get more questions**


	3. Stuff Starts Happening

Infinite Mass

Chapter 3

Stuff Starts Happening

so they had me locked in a very small room with no windows and shining steel for all four walls, aside from the mirror on one I suspect is actually a window, there was a table and chair in the center of the room. I sighed and sat down at the table, waiting for someone to enter the interrogation room.

well, at least I'm not about to freeze to death in a blizzard. they cuffed us, put us in the back of a mako and drove us to an unknown location, where I, and presumably the others, currently reside. they stripped me of my weapons and of my armor, giving me a generic black shirt and blue jeans set, with thick boots, but, however, no winter gear, so I'm not sure how I'm supposed to go anywhere on Noveria, bunch a' inconsiderate dicks.

looking in the mirror is interesting, my body has black hair, I was brunet before, blue eyes, that, at least, is unchanged, but the face is wrong somehow, almost like mine, but off just enough for it to feel foreign to look at, like I had plastic surgery on just one or two features on my face, leaving the rest untouched. the biggest change is in my physique, I wouldn't call myself fat before, but I was certainly stout, now I'm the picture of fitness, if only I felt as good as I looked, despite looking like a European male model I still felt like shit, stress I guess.

finally I see the door open and the same older man in the cowboy hat walk in , tipping his hat fondly and going to the table to sit down, holding a data pad.

"sup?" he said simply as he sat "you comfortable? everything good in here?"

"uhhh" I groaned "is this the whole, 'good cop' routine?"

he gave me a glare "what if it is? you and your buddies at least look like highly armed mercenaries, and given the fact that I could find literally no information on you guys I'd be inclined to think that was the truth" he smiled "but then again, it is as you say, good cop and all that, so I'll try and help you, you isn't in a position to argue."

he speaks the truth "you have a point there...sir"

"Detective Raylan Butler" he said, pride evident in his voice "Alliance marshal stationed on Noveria" Ray kept his smug smile as he put his feet up "we were investigating an energy spike on our sensors when we picked y'all up, I'm guessing that was you"

I didn't answer

"if it was you, I'd say you 4 have got to be the most inept mercenaries I've ever seen"

"we're not mercs" I answered, not thinking, even though it isn't flattering, mercenary work might be the only real cover identity that would work in this situation

Raylan shrugged "then what the hell are you?"

I opened my mouth to speak when I realized I had nothing left to say. my throat seemed to close as Raylan stared me down, smiling, he spoke again.

"look, I'll be frank?" he asked very simply, making my already frayed nerves jump with adrenaline "you know I'm the good cop, but a few of the others round here, well, they isn't fond of mercenaries, and they wouldn't buy for a second that four mercs would work alone, they'd think you were holding out on us, and if, say, I leave to get a cup of coffee, well I couldn't really stop them from barging right in here and doing what they do best, acquiring information, no alliance regs round these parts, just our own." he raised an eyebrow and maintained his smug look as I sighed and leaned on my hand, if he's trying to scare me, it's working.

"I don't know anything" I admit "I just woke up there, I don't know anything, or remember anything before that"

"if I had a nickel for every time a criminal gave that excuse" he pondered for a moment "well maybe nickels are a bad example"

his data pad beeped and he looked at it, his smug expression changing to one of complete and utter disappointment, mixed with annoyance. he grunted and grinded his teeth before sighing in exasperation, whatever the message was, he hated every word of it.

"wait here" he said angrily as he stood up, I panicked

"I told you the truth, don't send someone else in please!" I pleaded

"oh calm the fuck down" he said as he reached the door "no one's coming in here, I was bluffing!" then the door shut behind him, and I was stuck in the embarrassing position of sitting there like an asshole.

I heard fierce arguing behind the closed door and a moment later, two people entered the room, one was Raylan, the other was a young woman with darker skin and black hair...I know her from somewhere, I swear.

"we apologize for the inconvenience sir" she said with a voice I also recognize. she put a hand to her mouth and cleared her throat, glaring at Raylan.

he groaned "I apologize for any threats, harassment or other forms of coercion I may have inflicted on you, we urge you not to press charges" he looked both angry and embarrassed by this exchange, I almost seem sorry for the guy...almost.

She turned to me "a very valuable investor in the Noveria trade committee vouched for your conduct at comm station 9, you and your associates have been released, and, although you cannot carry your weaponry or wear your armor at the Port, we have them in storage so that they can be moved once you inform us of your permanent place of residence"

I shrug "I don't have a place to live" I reply

"don't worry we'll hold onto it" she said as the gruff, grizzled man beside her gave a quick, fake smile and crossed his arms, pouting in disgust.

so I can leave? even still that leaves one loose end "who vouched for me?"Maybe it was the guy on the phone...but he likely wasn't working alone so I have no way of knowing. I know he was a part of it, but I don't know who he is, I have an eidetic memory for Mass Effect Characters, so if he was canon, I'd recognize him, even by his voice to a certain degree (some voice actors are repeated, so it would be hard to tell), but I didn't.

the woman gave me a puzzled look "we assumed you'd know, he specified that he wanted his identity kept anonymous"

"great" I say as I stand up "can I go now?"

"sure" the woman said "name?"

"I'm not in the system?" I'd think this body would have existed before I entered it

"no, no information"

"Maxwell Ian Barton" I replied as I approached her, giving her a look as I suddenly remembered her, it was Gianna Parasini, hmm, I thought she was in internal affairs, not in the place Raylan would be, but I guess she didn't start there. she nodded and replied that I'd be entered into the system as soon as possible, apparently get one investor to vouch for you and even identity fraud can be overlooked, which begs the question, who the fuck vouched for me?

Gianna smiled as I left the room only turning around again to ask where my friends were, she replied that they were in the waiting room. after taking a few wrong turns in this labyrinthine excuse for a police station, I came to a reception area filled with chairs, where a stiff, and neatly arranged Quarian girl, a fidgety and impatient Turian dude, and a seriously sleepy looking Krogan all resided, the Turian and the Krogan both in generic casual clothing. it's still so weird to see them like this, I still remember the rag tag group of near do wells I knew and loved back home, they're still just as rag tag, but now we're even more mismatched.

as I approached Alex was regaling Ryan with another of his stories. " I swear dude" he said "she looked _exactly _like the girl from Silver Linings Playbook, we were both drunk, things went well from there, it was awesome"

"what was her name?" Ryan replied

Alex didn't answer, he just leaned back, something tells me he didn't remember "...Jennifer?"

Ryan shook his head "of course it was" he replied sarcastically.

Kara's masked face looked up to see me and her body language seemed to perk up "Max, they let you out" she said in a satisfied tone "they had us waiting here for a while"

"oh..." I said "so you weren't questioned by mister spaghetti-western back there"

"uhhh" Kara Replied "mister who now?"

"never mind" I said "let's just get out of here guys"

"dude!" Ryan said lumbering over to me "you aren't gonna believe the view outside"

I gave him a smile as we walked to the door "I doubt anything would surprise me at this point" then we opened the door.

The view was incredible, a giant sprawling indoor metropolis, with crowds of aliens and humans going about their business in peace, chatting and going between the various rooms and stands. it was clearly a market district, with storefronts and strip malls spread all over the place with clerks selling their wares. I always thought that Mass Effect was a pretty immersive game, but I never thought about THIS before, it hasn't hit me until now where we are, we aren't in a videogame, we are in a living breathing world, just not ours, a world where people live and die, struggle and survive.

it's our home now, and I'm not sure what to think about that. not gonna think about it now though. I always wanted to strike out on my own, leave my family behind, just not like this. not in a way that I can never return from. I look up to see a sign with the Date, my jaw drops.

2176

7 years before the attack on Eden Prime

this day just gets better and better.

###

so we all sat at a nearby restaurant which we specifically scouted to make sure we could all escape out back when they gave us a check, no cash, it's not like we could pay for any of the food. the place was classy, like the Pizzeria I used to work at back home, hardwood flooring, tons of nostalgic crap nailed to the wall, only a fraction of it relevant to humans, there was even a bar which Alex got excited over, he even spotted a whiskey bottle with the year "2040" on its side, which is a big deal over a century into the future. but, of course I had to tell him, he was a Turian, he couldn't drink human alcohol, to say he was bummed would be putting it lightly.

none of us knew what to order so we just told the waitress (a young bubbly Asari who couldn't help but steal a few glances and flirtatious winks in Alex's direction) to "surprise us" she then wrote down all our species and went back to the kitchen.

"well" Ryan said as he leaned on his gargantuan arms, making the table creak and moan in protest "I think there is only one course of action here" he widened his reptilian mouth into a grin "we train for 2 years and join Commander Shepard's crew"

Alex squinted at Ryan, Mandibles flicking in interest, he made a low "hmmmmm" sound before putting his chin in his hand and pondering for a moment.

then, of course, he proceeded to laugh his ass off, loudly, for about 10 seconds. "dude, Ryan" he said "do you honestly think that Commander Shepard would let us onto his or her crew, 3 teenagers whose biggest military strength is an affinity for Call of Duty, and one girl who is subsequently stuck with the former 3 idiots"

Kara groaned, but didn't disagree.

"c'mon" Ryan said "we can train up, get good at fighting beforehand, then she'll have to let us join" I noticed how he instinctively called Shepard a "she" without knowing if it was true, I never figured Ryan for someone who plays a femshep, but I guess people can surprise you

"'hey, uhhh, Commander'" Alex began to say in a mock-Ryan voice "' I know you don't know us but we're big fans of yours and we were hoping we could join your crew, no, we don't have any training but we did fire our guns at a dummy a few times, plus this little guy's biotic, he can't lift a two pound crate more than an inch but he's biotic" he snickered to himself and shook his head "you're a fucking fool Ryan"

Kara sighed and turned to Ryan "for the record" Kara said "I'd be game...if it wasn't one of the few occasions where Alex is right"

Ryan looked aghast at his friend's reluctance "c'mon guys!" he cried out "we know the future and we can use it to save lives"

silent until now, I open my mouth to speak, but I can't as Alex readily interrupts me

"yeah" he said "we know the future, we know that Shepard has zero trouble saving the Galaxy without our help, why risk our lives on something we know is going to succeed"

"think about it Alex, why would we be brought here if not to help Shepard, maybe something is amiss, maybe one of the things in the timeline has gone awry, and it's up to us to fix it"

Alex chuckled and took a sip of the water they already had sitting on the table "then someone picked the wrong chosen ones"

Kara sighed her infamous "Alex" sigh and turned to me "what do you think?"

"um" I scratched the back of my neck, unable to make a decision, I had resolve a moment ago, I had made a decision, but now that it's time to speak and commit to it, that resolve has disappeared, I make one statement that I believe encapsulates my situation perfectly "Kara, I'm not a soldier...I hate the idea of killing anyone okay, so, no, I don't want to do it"

in a way, Ryan's right, joining Shepard is the only thing that makes sense given our situation, but I don't care if it makes sense, I'd be risking my life...even after losing all of my family apart from Alex, I don't want to die.

Ryan growled and glared daggers through us "you mother fuckers" he said angrily "would you rather just continue your boring old sack of shit lives or do you want to do something that matters." when none of us answered him he scoffed and got up, storming off.

being the good friend she was, Kara stood up and went after Ryan, who was storming into a darkened hallway.

if you'd been asked to measure the number of fucks Alex gave, you wouldn't find any. he sat there sipping his water without a care in the world. this always made me a bit angry, his belief in being the coolest living thing in any given room. now that he's a Turian, well, it's all the easier for him.

"how do you do that?" I ask him, somewhat angrily "make someone angry, watch them storm out in disgust and just, not care?"

"what?" Alex said, insinuating that I was the asshole "I was telling the truth, you agreed with me"

"that's not the important part Al" I said, trying to sound sympathetic "we're all together in this fucked up situation, remember that"

his mandibles widened in a grin "you and I? maybe, but Kara and Ryan don't have the same privilege, you ever hear their stories Max? Kara's family hated her, alienated her, this dimensional travel thing was a bonus for her, and Ryan? his dad was a coke fiend who kicked him out of the house, and he ended up stuck sharing an apartment with a ditzy girlfriend who couldn't spell a three-syllable-word to save her life, neither of them know what it's like little brother, losing what we lost"

it was a bullshit excuse, I know, but given the circumstances I didn't want to argue morals with him, I'd never win, I never win arguing with him "whatever" I replied dismissively before growling in anger "where is that waitress?" as much as I didn't like the way he lived, there was no denying that Alex was my best friend in this fucked up world, we grew up together, only 2 years apart, we played together, laughed together, did almost everything together, it was only in high school that we began to drift apart.

these days, I can't afford to send him away, I need all the friends I can get.

I smile and look at him, hoping to lighten the mood "you know the worst part about all this"

"everything?" he replied

"I'll never get to play anything next gen, you know, Xbox One, PS4" I shook my head "and it looked so awesome" we just never had the money, I wanted to say it, but I didn't want to darken the mood.

"so awesome" he replied, his eyes drifting off dreamily "but not the worst part, that would have to be all the food and drink I can no longer have" he replied angrily before he looked around frantically "where the fuck is that waitress?"

"even in the future the service sucks" I point out, glancing back at the bar to find the Asari bartender across the restaurant talking to a customer, a Turian in a black suit, she seemed annoyed to be speaking with him, through reading her lips I discerned what was said was "fuck off" I watched as the Turian turned toward me and we made eye contact. he started toward me and I averted my eyes.

"I have to pee" Alex said as he stood up "time I face the music and learn how stuff like that works with an alien cock" he walked off, leaving me alone.

I turned, in shock, to see the Turian who was talking with the bartender, next to me, growling as he forcibly sat down next to me, barefaced and pale, why are barefaced Turians so creepy?

then in one swift motion he pulled out a gun and pointed it between my legs at an angle that no gun should ever be twisted at.

"you see" he said in a measured, gentlemanly voice "I learned on Shanxi, interrogating human prisoners that human males very much value there private parts, going for them is good way to threaten while still taking death off the table, doesn't work for Turians though, our bits only come out during the act"

"okay" I said, terrified "too much information"

"sorry, didn't mean to make you uncomfortable human, I have no hard feelings towards you or your kind, just part of the job"

"what job would that be?"

"oh" he said with a chuckle "clever, trying to get me to talk, you'll see soon enough, I'm just supposed to make sure you don't run"

"you could have pointed the gun anywhere else and I wouldn't have ran" I stared at him with wide eyes and nodded.

"no doubt" the Turian said "still, can't point the gun above the belt, someone would see, plus I didn't want you thinking I was going to kill you"

"yeah" I said as I wrung my hands in fear "and pointing the gun...there has totally convinced me of that" I'm reminded of a similar scene from Django Unchained, where it is explained how quickly one bleeds out and dies after their...bits are forcibly removed. where the fuck is that waitress? I turned to see a tiny, three fingered hand tap on the Turian's shoulder. as I looked to see who the Turian was turning to see I saw a Quarian, the Color scheme was familiar enough that I assumed it was Kara, I'll probably memorize the look soon enough.

"sup?" she said before bringing a fist down on the Turian's left mandible. he growled and lifted the gun, (I had never been more relieved in my life) prompting Kara to grab his wrist and twist it back, he shrieked in pain and the gun fell to the floor. she jabbed with her other hand and he blocked it, leaving him open for Kara's immediate head butt, which disoriented him and knocked him back.

I wasted no time scrambling over the table and onto the floor...well, I sort of tripped jumping off the table and I fell on my face, Typical me.

As I pull myself up I see Kara grabbing the Turian's gun from the floor and grabbing my shoulder "c'mon" she said "we have to get the others!"

She grabbed my collar and led me into a nearby hallway. There I saw Ryan's giant, lumbering form come into view. "What the hell is going on!?" He demanded, sounding more Krogan than ever.

"There's a guy" I stammered "he's after me"

"Huh?"

"Short answer: run" Kara very astutely pointed out.

I turned back to see the Turian down the hall from us readying another gun, he obviously brought a spare. As he took aim so did Kara and they both ended up behind their respective walls for cover. Kara shot first, a loud but muted sound and a single flash, sound suppression must have improved in the future. The shot hit nothing, neither did the next two or the three shots the Turian shot back. Then Kara screamed at us to move and we all ran, finding them. Bathrooms down the hall. One said men, one said women, and just to confuse me, one said "other" but I guess the recognition of non-binaries is a good thing, and necessary considering how the various biologies of alien species work.

As all of us piled into the men's bathroom we were surprised to see Alex, washing his Talons in the sink, looking at us strangely.

He groaned "can't escape you people apparently"

"No time" Kara said, going to the window "we're leaving" then she used the pistol to break the window, standing beside it, waiting for us to go through.

It was a big enough window, at least for me, Alex and Kara, but I had my doubts about Ryan. Never the less I went to the window and began to squeeze through.

"Really?" I hear Alex say, going to the window "I'm guessing Max fucked something up somehow" then he began to go through the window after me, landing same as me, in an alleyway. I looked up and was still disoriented to see ceiling above me, Noveria can only function indoors, but it's still weird walking around in here.

"Hey!" I said, annoyed as I suddenly realized what Alex had said.

"Just saying, it's usually your fault"

"Both of you" Kara said as she sent Ryan through "shut it"

The gargantuan Krogan got halfway through before getting stuck. I saw his face change , from determination to utter shock, he shrieked and flailed his arms.

"Damn it all!" Alex said before running to Ryan and tugging on his arm in a vain attempt to help.

Then I started to hear gunshots, I'm assuming both from Kara and the Turian. I went to Ryan, tugging on the same arm Alex was but it still wasn't working, even with Ryan's constant squirming. Then Ryan and Kara came flying out of the window after the latter seemed to ram Ryan through.

The four of us fell into a heap in the alley behind the restaurant, I was alone, staring up at the ceiling of the indoor city. I groaned and rolled to my side seeing that Kara had landed on Alex, making him smile lecherously...huh, only been a few hours and I'm already observing Turian smiles, then again he is my brother, I tend to know when he's smiling.

"Wow" he said "didn't even buy me dinner first"

Kara growled lowly and rolled off him "pig" she said under her breath. Honestly it baffles me that that girl has stuck with us this long.

"Well" said a familiar, posh voice. I turned and saw the Turian we were running from moving through the window and dropping onto the ground. Kara tried to stand but the Turian aimed his gun at her and she froze. "No one moves" he said to us

"I thought you wanted us alive" I said to him

He chuckled sadistically "like I said, nothing personal, but I only need one of you"

Kara stood up, the Turian didn't fire "bastard!" She dared to say as the rest of us were silent. "Let us go!"

"Oh" the Turian snickered "you've got spirit" he took aim "you die first"

I heard a loud bellowing cry as a huge Krogan body collided with the assassin and knocked him into a wall.

"SON OF A BITCH!" the man yelled as he held onto his stomach. Ryan turned back to us and waved his arms "run!" he yelled at us before turning back to the assassin.

the gun fired and blood shot from Ryan's chest. he grunted and held onto the wound as the three of us watched in horror. the assassin was debilitated on the ground from his collision with Ryan, but he still raised his gun again for another shot. he wasn't fast enough, as Kara, who had gotten a hold of her gun again, fired a single shot that buried itself in the Turian's chest, he wasn't blown back, he didn't fall to the ground, he stood still and the bullet tore through him. for a few seconds he groaned and wheezed as he held onto the wound, moaning in pain before he slumped on the ground and stayed still.

Kara stared at the body, hands shaking. I turned to see Ryan, clutching his belly, leaning on the alleyway wall. I just stood there, eyes darting from Ryan to the body and back again, unable to speak or even move.

"shit" Ryan said, removing his hands from his wound "doesn't even hurt"

Kara turned to the rest of us and nodded, shaking's think we should leave"

###

we'd only just stopped running when we reached the docks. it took a little while but earlier we were able to stow the body in a nearby dumpster, thankfully the first few shots in the restaurant scared away pretty much any witnesses who might have arrived, so nobody saw us, and any police arrived mere moments after we had left, we were damn lucky. now we were standing around the Noveria spaceport trying to catch our breath and plan our next move, making sure to stay far from any crowds to make sure no one heard us..

"we can't stay here" Kara said "Noveria I mean"

"well where the fuck are we supposed to go?" Alex said "we have no money, no transport"

"we'll figure something out" Kara said firmly "we could sell our weapons"  
"No" I said "we killed that guy back there, not long until the cops find us"

"who is this 'we' you speak of" Alex said, looking at Kara "it's this one who was a little too trigger happy"

Kara went up to him and pushed him back "I did what I had to do!" she screamed at him, though from the tone of her voice, I guessed she wasn't sure.

"well now we're in this fucked up mess because of you!"

"SHUT UP!" Ryan yelled louder than anyone else could. he still held his stomach to stop the bleeding, but we found out quickly that krogans can take a few shots and still be perfectly fine. "ALL OF YOU!" he shook his head and growled "this is getting us no where"

Alex put his hands up in surrender "alright, your right, I'm sorry" a strange gesture coming from him, but as I forget to remind myself, he isn't always a prick.

Kara just glared at him, growling to herself.

I looked over a railing to see a large grey ship with its cargo bay open , people walking to and fro, loading boxes onto it. the ship was old, rusty and broken, and has seen plenty of better days. probably a few places on that ship where people can hide out for a trip, avoid being seen.

"so..." Alex said "what do we do?"

I turned to them and smiled "that's easy" I pointed to the ship "we stow away"

**NOTE(and a kind of long one at that):**

**okay I have a lot to cover so let's get right into it**

**this chapter is a bit more...um...deserving of that M rating then other chapters, I like violence and suggestive content, what can I say, it's also incredibly long, hope you enjoyed that, pretty sure it won't be a regular thing**

**well let me address the elephant in the room...well, honestly you might not have even noticed it, but it's a big deal for me**

**I retconned my original description for the fic and set it 7 years before ME1 instead of 2, this is for story purposes that will come into play later, and for a reason I just thought up recently, that'll let you know how far I plan ahead in this story, despite writing ahead**

**another thing, after this chapter it sort of gets a little...slow, for a few chapters, it'll be a lot of build up and character development and set up but those chapters won't be as long so I hope it's bearable at least.**

**on another note I was playing ME3 multiplayer the other day and entirely by coincidence ended up with a squad comprised of me, an N7 Slayer, a Krogan Sentinel, a Turian Havoc Soldier, and a female Quarian Infiltrator**

**It even turned out to work out the way I imagined the character dynamics to work, the Quarian was the most capable, soloing several rounds after the rest of us got ourselves killed, me and the Turian were a dynamic duo of dumb getting ourselves downed recklessly trying to cover one another and revive each other, and the Krogan just stuck to everyone he could like glue and was best at supporting his squad mates at his own expense, and overall we had rough patches and didn't look like we would win, but all of us ended up extracting by the skin of our teeth**

**weird, but it did give me a lot of good ideas, so consider that a tease of what's to come**

**and I just now realized I should have taken screenshots**

**...shit**

**well it can't be helped now, hope you enjoyed the chapter, see you guys next time :)**


	4. Buyer's Market

Infinite Mass:

Chapter 4

Buyer's Market

it was quiet, the ride. I don't believe even two words were spoken between the four of us. We got to the docks and found our way inside the old cargo vessel, finding an old closet big enough for all of us. the crew didn't see us, we waited until they'd all gone off for what we assumed was shore leave.

It was hours of sitting silently in a cramped space, staring into pitch black, sometimes one of us dared to look at another for a split second before they realize they're being looked at and they'd avert their eyes nervously.

Arriving was the same deal, no words, Kara swiped a credit chit someone left out, but it wasn't much, enough to buy some food, that's it. things were still quiet, although silence then was more due to awe then shock. I looked up and saw clouds, the sun, and towering skyscrapers bigger than I could have ever thought possible. There was a sky, an open sky , even though I only spent a day in the indoor cityscape of Noveria I still found myself missing places like this as if they were a distant memory.

Soon the four of us found ourselves sitting on a nearby bench. Kara, Alex and I shared it while Ryan sat on a nearby garden patch pulling up grass like an annoyed child outside in a PE class.

"Okay" Kara said, finally breaking the silence "it's important now to find a few essentials, shelter, food, income, that sort of thing, Max, you check the extranet, ask around, find us a place to live where we can rent without a deposit, me and Alex will go job hunting , Ryan will buy some food"

All of us agreed to the plan and we split up and got to work, agreeing to meet back at that bench when the day was done. For me this meant sitting at the nearest extranet terminal looking up cheap apartments on Illium. I saw plenty if comm numbers on the extranet pages I looked at and begrudgingly I knew I had to start calling.

Eventually I figured out how to open the comm function on my Omni-tool, typing in number after number, saying the same old song and dance each time.

"...I was calling about the open apartment you have"

"...No sir, I want to move in today"

"...four tenants, three of my friends are moving in with me"

"...I'm sorry, no, I don't have any credits, but I'll pay the rent by the end of the month"

"...no? Well, thanks anyway"

I had almost given up hope, at least until one of the numbers brought me to a nervous sounding girl who insisted I meet her at a nearby cafe. She gave me directions and told me she was the Asari girl with the red hood. When I walked into the coffee shop I saw her immediately, sitting alone at a booth with a_ cup of steaming green_ liquid in her hand. She seemed to fidget and adjust herself a lot, like she was perpetually uncomfortable. As I sat Down I saw her unusually short and slender form, shorter than me, she had fair blue skin and purple face paint in a streaks around her face..

"Max Barton?" She said, looking at a datapad in her hand "says here your account was created yesterday, no birth certificate, no credentials, day before last, you didn't exist"

"You found that, huh?" I chuckled nervously

She seemed confused by the gesture as her eyes widened and shifted from side to side "was I being funny?"

"oh!" I exclaimed "no, I just, I laugh when I'm nervous" to make things more awkward the ensuing silence is long. I scratch the back of my neck and averted her gaze.

"right" she said after a while "when I'm nervous I talk too much, it's always been a bit of a problem, you know, when I was a kid-" she widened her eyes and looked at me "I'm doing it now aren't I"

I didn't reply

"oh don't even say it, I know your thinking it"

"right" another damned awkward silence "the reason my account is new..." I rehearsed a cover story on the way over, but it isn't quite translating well "my parents raised me outside Council space, I was never registered, moved away at 18, few months ago, just had my account instated yesterday"

"right" she replied "now, onto business"

"yeah" I said, relieved at the change of subject despite not knowing why it was suddenly not an issue.

"my Mom, she left me in charge of a few of her properties, the cheaper ones, anyway" she pressed a few buttons, she turned and showed it to me on her datapad, a small boxy looking building "small house, very cheap, and you can room with your friends if you like"

"really? everyone else I talked to turned me down"

"well my mom has been pressuring me to rent this place out otherwise he'll demolish it and build a StarCafe"

"is there something wrong with it?"

"oh, nothing...err, major"

I raised an eyebrow at her "really?"

she broke down "okay, there may have been a...minor, Red Sand lab in the basement, but you'll only get minor side effects...as long as nobody living there gets pregnant, if so then...not so minor" she rubbed the back of her neck and widened her mandibles in a nervous smile "plus there was that guy who got stabbed to death...but they caught the guy I swear"

"well" I said "I'm in no position to be picky, do you need a deposit?"

"well the last guy I said that to walked out so, no, you don't need a deposit, just pay the rent each month and handle the upkeep, if you're interested I can bring up the lease for you to look at" she stowed her datapad and got up from her seat, beckoning me to follow her as she left the cafe.

"I uh" she stammered "I should probably take you to the house to see it"

"sound's good"

"name's Talyyn, by the by, or just Tal if you prefer, or just Lyyn, or Talyyn, you know, whichever"

"I'll call you Lyyn" I told her "you can call me Max, not Maxwell or anything"

"great" she looked around and seemed annoyed "where did that car get off to"

###

after a short ride we eventually reached the house, just as small and dingy as it looked in the picture Lyyn showed me. it was even more so due to the ramshackle surrounding area. getting inside was a little better, it seemed a bit nicer than my old house but it also seemed to stink of old leather and rotten eggs, but not so bad as I couldn't get used to it.

"no furnishings" Lyyn said "you have to handle that yourself, there's an electric stove, an oven, a few sinks, a bathroom with a shower, all you really need...oh and a Laundromat a few blocks away"

"beds?"

"sorry no...you'll have to live out of sleeping bags for a while"

"okay then, better than nothing"

"yeah" she chuckled nervously taking out her datapad and showing me a long page full of text "the lease, just sign it and you can move in"

I furrowed my brow at her "why do you trust me? for all you know I could be exploiting this place and burning it to the ground in a single day"

"well..." she scratched her head "you seem alright...though I'm not very good at reading people" she grumbled under her breath and showed me the lease again "just use your thumb, all it needs is a fingerprint"

I hesitate for a moment then press my thumb against the datapad

"great, now the doors are synced to yours and my hand prints, you can fiddle with the settings to add in other people's prints to the system" she went to the door and turned back to me "please, don't make me regret this, my mom will kill me...I'll be back next week to look at the place, don't destroy it by then, and make sure you can at least prove you can pay for the place"

"I'll try"

then she left and the sliding door shut behind her. I sighed and sat against the wall a few feet away. great, that's shelter down.

###

I eventually found a transit station and got back to the bench we agreed to meet at, I only found Ryan there, sprawled out over the bench with his head on a pillow he apparently bought, drooling on it, grocery bags draped over his slumbering body.

determined not to wake him, I sat down quietly next to the bench with my knees in my hands enjoying the Illium sun.

suddenly he slurped in air and shot upright, sending groceries everywhere. "fuck" he cursed as he began to gather them up.

"good haul?" I asked him

"uhhh...yeah" he said "I'd say, not sure if I got the right stuff for Kara and Alex though" he rubbed the sleep from his eyes "could've poisoned them, but the Asari clerk insisted I got the right stuff. man, I'm tired, haven't slept since we arrived.

"so" I said "been meaning to ask...what's it like being Krogan?"

he looked intently at me "very slow, you know? reaction times are slower, I find I can't run as fast...plus I'm a lot clumsier and I find people give me weird looks"

"that's cause your huge, big guy"

he laughed "right...so...does this mean I'll live to be a thousand?"

I nodded "I expect so"

he frowned "I'll live to see all of you die"

"not so bad, just find some Asari or Krogan girl, everything will be great, I can't see that I'll always be there with you but you're luckier than most"

"I already have a girlfriend" he pointed out with sad eyes "one I'll never see again"

I stayed silent, it's not like I knew how he felt, me being my lonely self, it was awkward, I knew Ryan's girlfriend from before, I didn't find her as stupid as Alex did, she was just soft spoken and very shy, I wonder how she's handling everything. after another moment Kara came in with Alex not far behind, arguing with her.

"it was not a big deal" Alex said, something tells me it was

"dude, you were flirting with the foreman"

"forewoman" Alex corrected

"my point still stands"

"whatever, if anything it helped us with the job hunt"

"you do realize she could be old enough to be your grandmother's grandmother"

"she was Asari, age doesn't count for them"

Kara groaned and turned to us "we found a dock willing to hire new people, at first they turned us down but then we mentioned we had a Krogan to help us out, so they hired him and agreed to give us a few extra jobs"

"just...on the spot"

Alex shrugged "Kwilanna likes Krogan apparently...and Turians" I could almost see Kara mentally slap him with the look she gave him

"sadly" Kara said "I didn't have any luck with you Max

I frowned and Kara seemed to sigh with me

"any luck with either of you" she added to try and lighten the mood.

Ryan affectionately patted his haul "should last a little while, a bit for each of us"

all eyes were on me "found us a place to stay, a bit dingy and lacking any furniture but it'll do"

"great" Alex said, turning to Ryan "lackey! prepare the luggage"

Ryan growled "I had to carry this from the store all the way here!"

"just a little further then"

"you realize I was shot"

"you realize Krogan heal from that sort of thing"

I couldn't help but sigh a little at Ryan's groaning, but he was the strongest of us, made sense for him to carry the heaviest load.

###

the next few weeks were a blur of home improvements and of work, my job for the group ended up being shopping, I would look for furniture, beds and other such things, but it was hard to find the money with only three of us having jobs. Kara had a data entry job making sure all the cargo was properly recorded in the books down at the docks and Alex had a job as the Foreman's assistant, I wonder how. That man's libido is going to be the death of him, I swear it. Ryan lifted the heavy things, he was good at it too, not that there was much to learn..

ever since the incident with the Turian on Noveria I found myself worrying about Ryan, he was shot, even if he was a Krogan, I imagine it did some damage. sometimes I see him strain himself a bit too much and sudden grab the old wound, like it was giving him trouble, but if it was, he didn't tell me about it.

then came the home improvements, repainting the walls, fixing leaks (which became incredibly annoying due especially to the frequent Illium rains, apparently this is a rainforest planet, or was, before the Asari got here. I spent my mornings re-learning my daily routines, my afternoons sending me out and about and my nights free, tough I don't do much then besides play on my Omni-Tool.

Sometimes I go to one of the empty rooms and practice my Biotics, I'm getting better, I can levitate a small box for a few seconds but it doesn't always stay up. it's strange, using biotics, like using a muscle you didn't even realize you had.

Those attempts were just my intentional successes, however, I found that during periods of intense emotion or stress my biotics acted up on their own, and when they did I could end up sending everything in a room floating away for a few seconds. It cost us more than one piece of fragile cook wear when they ended up stopping mid air and crashing to the ground. This isn't like the game at all, in the game biotics are superheroes, but me? I'm just the same awkward teenager I always was, only able to do something remarkable when I don't actually want to.

then our weapons arrived, the ones from our original arrival in this universe. taking stock it was a set of Slayer Armor, a Piranha Shotgun, an N7 eagle, and a high vibrational blade for me, a set of Havoc Turian armor, a Reeger carbine shotgun, and a Cerberus Harrier Assault rifle for Alex, a set of Krogan heavy armor with a Revenant Assault rifle and a claymore shotgun for Ryan, and finally, last but not least, there was Kara, who had an N7 Valiant Sniper rifle and a small Phalanx pistol. we all also had a Cobra rocket launcher, each with two rockets in them.

we took the guns and armor out to look, but for me, they made me nervous, so I put them away and haven't looked at them since.

On the subject of our equipment I remember running into Kara, sitting on top of the crate the equipment came in, fiddling with her Valiant rifle.

she noticed me walking past the room and beckoned me inside.

"I wanted to talk to you" she said as she lifted the rifle, I walked inside, hands in my pockets, saying nothing.

"this isn't right" she set the rifle back down on her lap "this rifle's been modified"

I was suddenly interested "what do you mean?"

"I mean that it fires just fine and never needs a thermal clip, sure, it overheats, but it cools down just fine"

I furrowed my brow at her "so? all guns did that before Mass Effect 2"

"yes" he nodded "but this is a Mass Effect 3 level gun, most likely only at the prototype stage at this point, if even that" she shook her head "someone built this, modifying the design to fit current technology"

"what are you suggesting?"

"look at our equipment, our armor, your face, it looks as though it's been designed to fit us perfectly, whoever brought us here didn't just slap us into the bodies of soldiers, they designed these bodies"

"that doesn't make any sense"

"does it not?" she sighed "cloning technology does exist here, why is it so inconceivable that these bodies were grown in a lab? Mass effect 3's multiplayer contains a level of character customization, what are the odds that a set of four soldiers existed in this world that looked exactly like the characters we designed?"

"we shouldn't be talking odds, what are the odds that we get sucked into the universe of a video game?"

"point taken" she went back to fiddling with her rifle "but I still think it feels suspicious"

###

Lyyn visits weekly to see how the place is looking, she never leaves disappointed and after the first month we were actually able to pay rent, due to the others' combined incomes at the docks. sometimes we invite her to eat with us and we regale her with stories of our old exploits, the incident with the stubborn tree Alex was trying to cut down at a friends' house, the time we all went bowling and Ryan had to drive us all home on a bunk license, getting pulled over. eventually all these conversations came back to the same old song and dance, Kara's enlisting, Ryan's moving away, my going away to school and Alex's student teaching (he wants to be a teacher, him, of all people) whenever the conversation reaches that point the mood dies and all we can do is mope around with our guest.

I want to say we're lucky to still be together after everything that's happened, but I'm not so sure if that's true, we used to be inseparable, now look at us, we bicker and fight every chance we get, and it's starting to take its toll.

but for now, we're alive, and we have enough in the way of money and resources to stay that way for a little bit longer.

**NOTE: **

**I feel like I might have messed something up last chapter, given how no one reviewed it, and how I didn't get any new favorites or follows but no matter, keep moving forward and all that, eventually people will start reading more consistently, I just have to keep going**

**or it'll just turn out to be a mess, who knows**

**so this is the first of the slow chapters, and I imagine you can see why, it's just the characters doing normal person stuff, but the plot does still start kicking in soon**

**in terms of writing I'm on chapter 12, which was probably my favorite chapter to write of the entire story thus far, I'd say that the story should last into the twenties as far as Chapters go but who knows I might wrap it up earlier or later than that, but that isn't important now**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter and you know, people actually let me know what they think about it this time.**


	5. Alternate Realities

Infinite Mass: Playing Hero

Chapter 5

Alternate Realities

"so" Alex said with his feet up on the small table we poached from a neighbor's yard when they tried to throw it away, sitting on the chair we picked up from a yard sale a few blocks away. "food…you almost done?"

I was leaning on the stove, reading an entry on my Omni tool, a recipe for dextro amino acid eggs, I told him to cook his own food, but with how he is I figured he'd starve if I didn't feed him, plus...I really like cooking, making my own food just appeals to me, I always like being self dependent.

"dude I haven't even started yet" I said "still gotta figure out this recipe"

sudden the door to the living room slid open and Ryan was standing in the doorway, datapad in hand and a look of concern on his face. he walked in and put the datapad on the table.

"you have to see this" he said as he pulled out the only chair that wasn't occupied by Alex and sat down, leaving me to stand and watch. he picked up the datapad and showed it to me.

**Decorated Turian General Desolas Arterius awarded the Medal of Duty, the Turian's highest honor.**

Desolas was Saren's brother, wasn't he? and he was a general, I don't see the problem with him getting a commendation when he was alive.

Ryan looked at me "that article was posted on the extranet...yesterday"

...oh

"Desolas is supposed to be dead" I pointed out

"okay okay" Alex said, putting his feet down from the table "let me interrupt your little fangasm with a question...who the hell is Desolas Arterius?"

"he's Saren's brother" I said "he showed up in an expanded universe comic book, he unearthed Prothean artifacts which he intended to use to evolve the Turian race, turning them into Reaper slaves, until of course the Illusive man and Saren stopped him, killing him in the process"

"huh…" Alex shrugged "I guess all those years of not getting laid are really paying off for you huh Max?"

I glared at him while Ryan looked at the datapad again

"I'm telling you guys" he said, shaking his head "something's not right here, beyond just Desolas we should be out there, looking for clues, figuring this shit out"

"we've been over this" Alex said "we aren't soldiers, as much as we look like them, we're just gonna lay low for a while"

"yeah" Ryan scoffed "and that's not gonna bite us in the ass, right" he sneered sarcastically

I walked into the living room, mostly empty aside from a single ratty couch "where's Kara?" I asked

Ryan walked into the room, still scrolling through the datapad "she was upstairs I think, working on our equipment"

Just then a small floating metal pod came flying through the air whizzing just past my head, beeping and flashing. I recognized it as the turret used by certain multiplayer classes, including the female Quarian.

Kara came speeding down the stairs after it.

"Wait!" She cried out "stop that thing!"

We watched as she caught up with the drone and tackled it, looking up at us and laughing awkwardly.

"Just trying to figure this stuff out" she stood up and walking back to the stairs "I call him Gerty"

###

About an hour later I was out and walking through the aisles of the nearest super market, trying to decipher the strange names and labels of all the products. hell, I wasn't even sure if I was in the food aisle, or the appliances aisle.

I heard a noise from the wall behind me and turned to see a large holographic screen with an Asari woman in a dress behind a desk.

"today's top story" the Asari on the screen said "Protests continue on the Citadel, as the pro human group Terra Firma continues the push for equal representation in the Citadel government"

"what?" I said out loud as I walked closer to the screen, I was confused by the images on the screen, the crowd of protesters shown there was full of people, much more than any gathering the group was shown to have in the game. And this was the group of racists and human elitists.

"The pro human group has been calling for a stronger position in galactic politics for humans" the Asari anchorwoman continued "Terra Firma's crusade began years ago after the end of what humanity has dubbed the First Contact War, where a stunning defeat at the hands of the Turian Hegemony at Shanxi nearly crippled the Alliance's power, humanity was accepted into galactic society a year later, but many Terra Firma supporters have complained about the conditions humans are forced into on the Citadel, stating their goals of supporting human equality, though some do question their human centric ideals"

shit...this sounds bad

I immediately opened my Omni Tool and connected to the Extranet, clicking on any links I could find having to do with history. I thought maybe to do some research before but I figured it wasn't that important. According to what I was able to find, there was unrest among human citizens of the Citadel and other planets with significant Turian influence. They complained of being treated like second class citizens, missing out on job opportunities, being denied housing and resources based on their species, humanity made up a significant chunk of the Citadel's population residing below the poverty line, the list goes on. I was spared only due to Illium's more neutral position on the whole ordeal, after all it was the Turians with a grudge against Humans, not the Asari, the Asari weren't involved in the conflict, and it was the Asari who ran Illium.

the war itself was apparently a disaster, humans won a few of the first battles but by the end of the war they were being destroyed at every opportunity. Shanxi, the place where General Williams became infamous for his surrender in the games, was a ruin. people still lived there, but it was widely considered one of the worst and most poverty stricken places in the galaxy after several battles decimated the place. All because of one crucial detail: General Williams didn't surrender, and as a result the fighting went on...for a long time. There was also a few battles on Earth, it wasn't as badly damaged, but it was still enough to ensure that Earth wasn't the best place for humans to live anymore.

I closed my Omni Tool and leaned against the shelves of the store to think. My heart was racing, I had to tell the others about what I had discovered, especially Ryan. I still don't know what to think about it all, I suppose if I stay here on Illium it won't be a problem, but for a moment I think about what Ryan had to say, maybe Alex was wrong, maybe Shepard does need our help, if humans are treated poorly on the Citadel and even Earth there's no guarantee that Shepard will even join the military, hell with the attack on earth and everything a lot of civilians died, Shepard might not even exist anymore.

I pushed the thought out of my mind along with any thought of taking up Ryan's proposal, of course Shepard still exists, of course he or she will succeed in saving the galaxy, still despite my attempts, a sense of doubt still crept into my mind.

I moved to leave the store, we had enough food, I just came here to pick up something unimportant, something I elected to forget about. I walked down the aisle with my hands in my pockets before I saw something at the front counter that made my stomach drop.

I saw two men, one human, one turian. They were speaking to the Salarian clerk. Something about them put me on edge, maybe it was their formal attire in a freaking grocery store, maybe it was their professional demeanor, or maybe it was the fact that I was pretty sure I saw guns strapped to their torsos.

I don't know, but ever since the incident on Noveria, I learned to be paranoid. I turned around and retreated to the back of the store, finding a large door reading "emergency exit". Funnily enough when I went through an alarm didn't sound, I guess that wasn't exactly a priority for the planning department.

I found myself in an alleyway beside the grocery store and I walked out onto the street opposite the main entrance, putting my hood up and looking up to watch the sea of flying cars go whizzing by.

I ended up lost amid a crowd of people, impossible to spot, or so I thought. My fears ended up confirmed a few minutes later when a skycar pulled up beside me, hovering a foot or two off the ground. the windows were tinted, but when I saw the one facing me slip open I recognized the two men inside as the same ones from the grocery store. I gasped and ducked into a nearby alley just as I started to hear them open the door and step out. I was almost to the other end when I saw a second skycar park there, blocking my way.

I turned about just in time for the turian to swing some sort of billy club at my head. I felt pain and an immediate throbbing, as well as a sudden case of blurred vision. I started to feel blood trickle from my forehead just as the human grabbed me by the shirt collar and slammed me against the wall. I grunted in pain as my vision began to clear.

"call it in Terras" the human growled as he continued to hold me, my mind too disoriented to struggle. I only succeeded in panicking and whimpering pathetically.

"you've got the wrong guy" I pleaded, trying to get him to let go of me, to no avail.

"you're gonna have to do better than that kid"

I groaned as another wave of pain from the blow hit me. I started to glow as it washed through me and a blue shockwave shot out from my chest, knocking both of them back and sending them flying into the opposite wall.

all I could do was fall to my knees and put both hands on my throbbing forehead as the two men struggled to reorient themselves after they most likely received injuries similar to mine. I shook my head violently and enough awareness came back to me for a single thought to slip into my brain: run.

I stumbled to my feet and shuffled down the alleyway, leaning on the wall for support. after another few moments I emerged on the street and was able to find my balance and walk normally after that. I didn't have much time to think, so I looked back to make sure the men hadn't left the alley already, they hadn't.

the next thing I did was practically fall onto the next door I could find with an "open" sign next to it, a small bar a few doors down from the alleyway. I thought maybe I was safe when I found a seat at the counter. the place was a total dive, with a few looks I was able to confirm I was the only customer in the place, though it was a bit early to expect a lot of partiers, it also wasn't even a weekend.

the Asari bartender looked me up and down "you're bleeding" she said in an older, slightly raspy voice.

"just something light okay" I said putting a hand on my forehead as I the red stuff began to come out of the wound again.

"you want some medi-gel first?"

I wasn't listening that time, I was looking behind me, spotting the two agents running up just in front of the bar and stopping, they looked around for a moment and didn't seem to see me, small favors I guess. I cursed loudly to myself and stood from the stool, heaving myself over the counter and onto the floor beside the Asari's feet, ducking my head and shutting my eyes (as if that would help).

"what the hell!" the Asari exclaimed

"I'm being followed!" I said quickly "those guys outside just jumped me!"

as if on cue the bell for the door rang and I heard two sets of hurried footsteps.

"hey!" said the familiar voice of the human as he seemed to approach the bar "have you seen a kid? tall? black hair?"

"yeah" the Asari said with a sigh. My heart sank. "he ran by just outside, you go now you might catch him" I silently breathed a sigh of relief as both men growled angrily and ran out of the bar. I waited a few moments before speaking up.

"thanks" I said "I owe you one"

"don't get used to it kid" she glared at me "stand up, they're gone"

"what if they come back"

"let me rephrase that" she crouched beside me "no customers behind the counter"

from her glare I got her message and stood up, walking to the other end of the bar, properly this time. the Asari turned her hand and her Omni-tool flicked on, with a single button press I suddenly felt a wave of force over my wound before the pain subsided, an intense chill in its place. That was how Medi-gel worked apparently, it flash vaporized from the spot it was stored at and reformed on the targeted area, and you have instant long ranged first aid. I do not however know how it works once it's actually on the wound, just another miracle of science I guess.

After the gel did its job stopping the bleeding the Asari gave me a rag to mop up the blood that was already there.

"so" she said as she grabbed a new glass "what's your story kid?"

I sighed "it's a very long story"

"as you can see, I've got a surplus of time, and a deficit of entertainment" I reminded myself again that the bar was nearly empty.

I smiled "my name's Max...Max Barton"

she nodded and threw a towel over her shoulder "Aethyta" she says with a smug smile, my eyes widened as I suddenly find myself staring. she holds out a hand "Asari Matriarch, and bartender"

I tentatively take her hand and shake it. the weight of all that has happened suddenly crushing down on me again as I realize I just touched a mass effect character. As I let go I immediately wipe my sweaty palm off on my pants.

"you know what?" I said, eyes wide "I think I need a drink...something strong"

Aethyta nodded as she grabbed a bottle from the shelf "happy to oblige"

**Note:**

**so here she is, the first Mass Effect character to be regularly featured in this story, a lot of the rest are just cameos, I just really liked what I saw of Aethyta in the games and figured I should expand on her character a bit for this story**

**so yeah, it takes place in an alternate universe to the real Mass Effect, I figured if everything was exactly the same, people who knew the future wouldn't be necessary, because they'd know for certain that Shepard would win with or without them…but don't worry I won't go crazy, the events of the games will pretty much happen as planned with a few key changes to keep things fresh and interesting**

**but anyway, will we learn the identity of the people trying to catch Max and his friends? Will Alex ever get his breakfast? and just who is behind it all?**

**all these questions and more will be answered, when I get around to it **


End file.
